Thread spool and needle holder



Aug. 1l, 1953 J. P. GALLAGHER ETAL THREAD SPOOL AND NEEDLE HOLDER Filed Sept. 27, 1950 Patented Aug. 11, 1953 THREAD SPOOL AND NEEDLE HOLDER John P. Gallagher and June L. Kelly, Chicago, Ill.; said June L. Kelly, now by marriage, June L. Gallagher Application September 27, 1950, Serial No. 187,105

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a thread spool and more particularly a thread spool specially constructed for holding a needle therein.

An object of the invention is the provision of a thread spool having a speci-al construction whereby a needle can be held therein in such position that the point of the needle is entirely covered or enveloped and the greater part of the whole needle is also enveloped.

Another object is to provide a thread spool having a novel construction whereby a needle can be inserted in the spool and frictionally held therein by the thread wound on the spool.

Another object is the provision of a thread spool of the character referred to in which the needle when held therein is for the greater part enveloped, and the spool with the needle therein can be readily yand conveniently carried in a purse or carrying case.

More particularly, an object is the provision of a thread spool having an opening of such size, shape and position that the point end of a needle can be inserted thereinto whereby the point 'and the greater part of the needle are enveloped with only the eye end of the needle protruding therefrom, and. which has means for frictionally securing the thread which is threaded in the needle for securing the needle in the opening.

Another object is the provision of a thread spool having a novel construction for holding a needle, which renders unnecessary the provision of a penetrable material for friction holding a needle inserted therein.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a thread spool having certain features of construction for carrying out the objects mentioned above, which features of construction are such that they are adaptable to slight modification for embodiment in spools made of dilferent materials.

A further object is the provision of a thread spool of the character referred to, whereby the following advantages are attained: (a) the need for a needle cushion is eliminated; (b) tangling of thread is prevented, such as usually occurs when a needle is placed in a cushion, whether the thread in a particular needle tangling with itself, or with the thread in other needles in the cushion; (c) a needle can be held in the same spool containing the supply of thread of the shade previously used in the needle, thereby preventing inadvertently selecting a needle having a thread therein of a different shade from that on the spool selected.

Other objects and ladvantages will be apparent 2 upon reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an isometric view of a spool forming one embodiment of the invention;

FFig. 2 is a top end view of the spool shown in Fig. 3 is a bottom end View of the spool shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal axial sectional View of the spool shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an isometric view of another form of spool, a portion of the spool being Ishown in section; and

6 is a top end view of the spool shown in The embodiments disclosed herein represent spools constructed of diiferent materials, while they include the essential features of the invention modified only to the extent necessary for the purpose of facilitating manufacture thereof with respect to the materials used and the manufacturing methods employed. An article of the nature of a thread spool must be manufactured at the lowest possible cost for obvious reasons; a material that is plentiful land inexpensive today may be scarce and expensive tomorrow, necessitating for practical reasons a change in the material used in making the spool which, in turn, by its very nature would require different manufacturing methods to be employed. Examples of materials which can be employed are plastic, wood, glass, die cast metals, pressed paper or fiber, metal, and other materials. With the above in mind the significance of the modifications disclosed herein, and the relation of the essential inventive features thereto, will be more fully appreciated. Specific reference to the materials used in the different modifications will be made in the following detailed description. The spool of Figs. l to 4 is referred to as being m-ade of plastic, and the spool of Figs. 5 and 6 as being made of wood; While these materials are found preferable for making the respective spools, other materials may be used, as indicated above.

The spool illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4 is made up of rigid plastic material. The spool as a whole is indicated at I4 and includes a cylindrical barrel lt with end pieces I8 and 20. The spool and particularly the barrel I6 thereof may be produced by compression or ejection molding process and is hollow for the purpose of economizing on the amount of material used. The end piece i8 may be integral with the barrel and extends radially outwardly of the barrel to form a flange 22. The end piece 28 is separate from the barrel and includes an axially extending central projection 24 and a radial flange 26 extending radially beyond the barrel and preferably of the same diameter of the flange 22. For convenience 4and appearance the barrel and flanges .are all of circular shape but, of course, other shapes may be employed as well. The projection 24 has a peripheral surf-ace in tight engagement with the inner ysurface of the end portion of the barrel I6 and is secured thereto by cementing or by ultra violet welding process. The end pieces are provided with apertures 28 for mounting the spool on a spindle when it is so desired.

The end piece 20 is provided with an aperture 30 disposed between the outer periphery of the flange 26 and the aperture 28 and with its central axis in alignment with the outer Surface of the barrel I6 as shown in Fig. 2. The aperture 38 is preferably formed in the molding process of the end piece.

The outer surface of the barrel I6 is provided with an open face groove 32 extending axially and communicating at one end with the aperture 30 and its other end adjacent to but terminating in spaced relation to the flange at the opposite end of the spool. The groove 32 is also preferably formed in the molding process of the barrel and preferably is semi-cylindrical in cross section, having a radius equal to that of the aperture 30 and being in alignment with the inner portion of the aperture 30. Fig. l illustrates the groove 32 as being of uniform cross-sectional dimension but, if desired, it may be of increasingly lesser dimension in a direction toward its lower end as viewed in Fig. l.

A sewing needle is illustrated at 34 inserted in the aperture 30 and groove 32. A thread 36 is threaded in the eye of the needle and wound around the barrel and over the needle.

A supply of thread 38 is shown in Fig. Il Wound around the barrel of the spool, this thread being that thread supplied with the spool. The lower flange 22 is provided with a notch 40 which for convenience will be referred to as the primary notch. This notch is illustrated in exaggerated condition in Figs. l and 3, the notch actually being in the form of a slit having substantially no width, into which the end of the thread can be inserted whereby the side surfaces of the slit frictionally engage the thread for holding it therein. Such a slit is believed to be well known. The end of the main supply of thread 33 may be inserted in the primary notch for retaining it against unwinding. The flange 22 is also provided with an auxiliary notch 42 similar to the notch 4U.

As is common in sewing, a length of thread is removed from the supply of thread 38 on the spool and threaded in the eye of the needle. After sewing with such thread a shorter length is usually left in the needle and the needle stowed away in an appropriate place which commonly was formerly a needle cushion. In the present instance, the needle is inserted through the aperture 30 and into the groove 32 inwardly of the main supply of thread 38. The groove 32 is of such length that the greater portion of the needle is inserted therein, and only a small portion of the eye end of the needle protrudes. The thread 36 in the needle is then wound around the barrel of the spool over the main supply of thread 38 and the extended end inserted in the auxiliary notch 42.

The needle employed for any particular kind of thread is ordinarily of such gauge to correspond generally with the gauge of the thread, namely, a small needle is used for small gauge thread and a larger needle used with large gauge thread. Therefore, the aperture 30 and groove 32 are in correspondence to a great extent with the gauge of thread on the spool and the size of the spool, which in turn is ordinarily of a size corresponding with the gauge of thread wound thereon. The radius of the aperture 30 and groove 32 is approximately equal to the radius of the needle most commonly employed with the particular gauge thread wound on the spool with, of course, practical tolerances. Therefore, when the needle is inserted in the aperture and groove its outer surface extends radially outwardly of the groove 32 and is engaged by the main supply of thread 38 which tends to frictionally retain the needle in position. Furthermore, the thread 36 threaded in the needle also retains the needle in position. When the needle is inserted into the aperture and groove, the thread 36 is ordinarily drawn tight and wound around the thread 38 and inserted in the auxiliary notch 42. That portion of the thread 36 extending across the top of the spool, therefore, will be drawn to such tightness that it will prevent the needle from falling out of the aperture and groove.

From the above it is believed that certain advantages will be clear, namely, that by far the greater part of the needle is enveloped and the point of the needle is wholly enveloped or enclosed and prevented from sticking a person. The spool can then be easily carried in a purse or carrying case. The needle carrying the thread 36 can therefore be inserted in the spool having the same shade of thread as the thread 38, eliminating the necessity of carefully selecting the needle having the desired shade of thread from the cushion when the latter is employed; also the thread 36 left in the needle does not become tangled, either with itself or with thread in other needles as is commonly the case when the needles are placed in a needle cushion. There is no necessity of employing a material which is penetrable by the needle, for example, the material of the spool is hard and impenetrable by the needle, but, nevertheless, the needle is substantially enveloped, and safely so.

It will be obvious that a single notch, such as lthe primary notch 4D, may be employed for holding both the thread 38 and the thread 36, although the employment of two such notches is preferable. In addition, the auxiliary notch 42, as well as the notch 40, may be located in either the bottom flange 22 or the top flange 26 with the same degree of effectiveness.

The spool 43 illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 is an example of a spool made of wood and consequently may conveniently be made of a solid piece turned down to the desired shape, and includes a barrel 44 and flanges 46 with a concentric bore 48 for mounting the spool on a spindle. The lower flange 46 is provided with an auxiliary notch 58 and a primary notch (not shown) similar to the respective notches referred to in connection with Figs. l to 4. The outer surface of the barrel 44 is provided with a groove similar in size, shape and position t0 the groove 32. Instead of an aperture such as 30, referred to above, the top ange 48 is provided with a slot or notch 54 cut radially inwardly from the periphery of the flange. In woodworking it is well known that it is dinicult to drill a groove such as 52 with only one side of the drill bit engaging the wood; therefore, in the case of the wood spool 55 the groove 52 can be readily cut with a rotary slotting saw and in the same operation the slot or notch 5ft is cut. Consequently, the inner end of the slot 54 is in line with and concentric with the groove 52 with the sarne eirect as referred to above in connection with i with reference to insertion of the needle 5S into the slot and groove.

It will thus be seen that the embodiment of Fig. 5 is essentially the saine as that of Fig. l with respect to the essential features of the invention and the function of the various elements, the only change being a substitution of the slot 5d for the aperture St, this being for the purpose of adapting the features of the invention to a spool made of wood.

It will be obvious that in each of the embodiments disclosed herein, the primary and auxiliary notches may be placed in either of the flanges; they need not be spaced in any particular manner, nor aligned when in different flanges; and a single notch maybe employed to serve the function of both. Furthermore it will be understood that a p-lurality of openings (such as aperture and groove 32 and corresponding conformations) may be employed as well as a single opening in any of the embodiments.

While we have herein shown certain preferred embodiments of the invention, changes may be made Within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

l. In a thread spool, a barrel having a flange at each end, said barrel having an axially extending groove in its outer surface, one end of the spool having` an opening therethrough with a portion of the opening in axial alignment with and communicating with said groove, said opening and groove being adapted for insertion of a needle thereinto from one end of the spool, the needle when in said groove being exposed to thread wound around the barrel, said groove extending a substantial portion of the length of the spool whereby only a small portion of the eye end of the needle extends outwardly of the confines of the spool, one of said flanges having a notch in its outer periphery for friction gripping a thread in the needle for aiding in retaining the needle in place in said opening and groove.

2. In a thread spool, a barrel having a ange at each end, said barrel having an axially extending groove in its outer surface, one end of the spool having an opening therethrough with a portion of the opening in axial alignment with and communicating with said groove, said opening `and groove being adapted for insertion of a needle thereinto from one end of the spool, the needle when in said groove being exposed to thread wound around the barrel, said groove extending a substantial portion of the length of the spool and terminating at a point adjacent to but spaced from the end thereof opposite said opening whereby only a small portion of the eye end of the needle extends outwardly of the connues of the spool, one of said flanges having a notch in its outer periphery for friction gripping a thread in the needle for aiding in retaining the needle in place in said opening and groove.

3. In a thread spool, a barrel having a flange at each end, said barrel having an axially extending groove in its outer surface, one end of the spool having an aperture therethrough with a portion of the aperture in axial alignment with and communicating with said groove, `said `aperture being spaced radially inwardly from the peripheral margin of the respective flange, said aperture and groove being iadapted for insertion of a needle thereinto from one end of the spool, the needle when in said groove being exposed to thread wound around the barrel, one of said flanges having a notch in its outer periphery for friction gripping a thread in the needle for aiding in retaining the needle in place in said aperture and groove.

fi. In a thread spool, a barrel having a flange at each end, said barrel having an axially extending groove in its outer surface, said groove being substantially semi-cylindrical in cross section. and having one end adjacent `to but spaced from one end of the spool and its other end communicating with an aperture through the opposite end of the spool, said aperture being substantially coaxial 4with said groove and being spaced radially inwardly from the outer periphery of the respective flange, said aperture and groove being adapted for insertion of a needle thereinto from one end of the spool, the needle when in the groove being exposed to thread wound around the barrel and only a small portion of the eye end of the needle being then projected outwardly of the connes of the spool, one of said flanges having a notch in its outer periphery for friction gripping a thread in the needle for aiding in retaining the needle in place in said aperture and groove.

5. In a thread spool, a barrel having a ilange at each end, said barrel having an axially extending groove in its outer surface, one end of the spool having a slot therein with a portion of the slot in axial alignment with and communieating with said groove, said slot opening through the outer periphery of the respective ilange, said slot and groove being adapted for insertion of a needle thereinto from one end of the spool, one of said fianges having a notch in its outer periphery for friction gripping a thread in the needle for aiding in retaining the needle in place in said aperture and groove.

6. In a thread spool, a barrel having a flange at each end, said barrel having an axially extending groove in its outer surface, one end of the spool having a slot therein with a portion of the slot in axial alignment with said communieating with said groove, said slot opening through the outer periphery of the respective flange, and said slot and groove being adapted for insertion of a needle thereinto from one end of the spool.

JOHN P. GALLAGHER. JUNE L. KELLY.

References Cited n the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 366,800 Watson July 19, 1887 670,665 Crowe Mar. 26, 1901 2,144,199 Press Jan. 17, 1939 2,368,025 Jamison J'an. 23, 1945 

